chains that must fulfil orders in timely way . To this end , we work diligently to ensure that our customers have the best experience possible , whether within the applications or toolsets that power their media supply chains for media workloads in both production and distribution segments , or that last mile experience that consumers feel through the content delivery network or the AWS network . Bridge : In essence , we ’ d say this was a four stage process : Build a good technical team with deep understanding of challenges at hand ( fundamental to far more than just QoE provision , of course ); Deploy strong monitoring and analysis tools to cut down on fault finding time and increase system understanding ; Distribute automated monitoring across the network to provide quality metrics in real-time as well as provide reports , and Engage in a strategy based on continuous improvement , making use of version handling and tracking as well as remaining abreast of new technology and trends on a broader basis . Broadpeak : Delivering a high QoE across all networks is a real challenge for video service providers . When they rely on standard CDN services to deliver their content , the global process happens in a black box . They can monitor QoE using analytics libraries embedded in the applications they provide , but when they see a drop in quality , they have no means of finding the root cause of the issues , which may be related to the CDN or Internet service provider ( ISP ). A more transparent way of handling video delivery is to leverage the caching and streaming capacities provided by ISPs directly , with the benefit of truly streaming from the edge , as close as possible to the end users . Interra : Service providers today create and transcode large volumes of content for different target devices . Ensuring a high quality of experience in the OTT world now requires a smart , end-to-end QC and monitoring strategy . The majority of quality issues occur as a result of improper video encoding during content preparation , so you need to have a QC system early on at the content preparation stage . Mediaproxy : By installing a comprehensive monitoring and compliance system that enables operators to monitor by exception . This means that more sources and outlets can be checked efficiently , with faults dealt with only when problems are detected . Plume : The first step is to be able to measure QoE accurately . Traditional QoS metrics can tell something about the performance of the network , but they don ’ t indicate the happiness of each client device . Consider a WiFi connected thermostat in comparison to a WiFi 4k set top box . The thermostat might be perfectly happy with conditions that would leave the set top box struggling . Plume has advocated a QoE metric that considers the needs of the client device , based on its type , its historical usage pattern , and its current activity state . The needs are compared to achievable speeds of the device , which considers the signal strength , interference , congestion , and data rates across all hops through the network including the Internet access backhaul . Synamedia : We strive to offer a Video Network portfolio that enables the best QoE across any delivery method , for example our ATSC-3.0 solutions allow broadcasters to deliver Next-Generation TV experiences such as 4K-UHD to end users . Our high performance encoding VIVID Compression portfolio and vDCM also deliver the best compression performance for streaming at any bit-rate from SD to 4K-UHD . Torque : Firstly , to ‘ ensure ’ QoE you would need some way to measure it now before deciding if it is gets better or worse . So since that ‘ Quality of Experience ’ is intrinsically a subjective impression in the eye of the beholder , the only scientific way to ‘ measure ’ it would be to take a survey of actual viewers . Not practical . Making objective , technical measurements which hopefully correlate to QoE is the only solution . VeEX : We strongly believe that the key is in understanding that QoE goes well beyond the technicalities of QoS / SLAs . It includes subscribers ’ owned equipment and the users themselves . So , it is no longer about testing at the demarcation point and saying , “ The service is working as promised ”, which can be frustrating words to non-technical subscribers . It is different if they hear : “ There is a problem with your Wi-Fi router . It is too old to support the speeds we are offering . You should upgrade it ”. QoE is what initiates subscribers to switch ISPs . Thus , proactive network monitoring as well as testing at upper layers , have gained traction . VIAVI : To ensure performance and QoE of today ’ s more complex , dynamic networks , service providers need to make field operations faster and more efficient by increasing reliance on automation . Advanced test and assurance solutions , remote connectivity , automated workflows and artificial intelligence all contribute to seamless visibility across the network from end to end , helping to ensure more consistent QoE . Is service provider packaging of third party OTT channels a challenge for QoS and QoE as there is limited access / control ? Accedo : The aggregator model certainly can add complexity as it means handling multiple integration points . To do that and guarantee certain SLA , you have to invest in a cloud abstraction platform , which ensures the delivery to your end consumer facing software and deals with all connections separately , monitoring and adjusting as required . In that way , each connector with the main platform can cater for the specificities of the integration point . That also allows providers to constrain the agreement with the OTT channel provider , in terms of SLA and features being supported and that over time . AWS : Packaging third-party OTT channels for QoS and QoE has become less challenging in the last year , with innovations enabling more seamless transport of high resolution , uncompressed video between applications , without a drop in quality . AWS CDI , for instance , which launched a year ago , has made it easier for ISV vendors to build applications using AWS networking constructs to transport video from one application to another set of applications in the cloud – without introducing additional latency or quality issues . Bridge : In any case where there ’ s an economic demarcation point , there ’ s a huge risk of contention . With content often delivered by the third party as a ‘ black box ’ to the provider , the provider is going to be understandably wary when they have limited visibility into the monitoring occasioned by the third party , and therefore have to take on
EUROMEDIA 15